Alicia Keys: Unplugged and unmatched
Welcome Alicia Keys into your ears for a concert of immense proportions.
Oct. 25, 2005
Alicia Keys can do no wrong.
OK, maybe she's not perfect, but Unplugged proves she's pretty close.
Keys brings the MTV Unplugged series out of retirement with her live album performed at the Brooklyn Academy of Music in July. By the end, you question why Keys hasn't gone completely acoustic.
The album reflects this concert atmosphere, with each track seamlessly flowing to the next. The album also creates a sense of intimacy, as if Keys is performing just for you, not just your laptop playing her CD.
Unplugged, because it eliminates instruments requiring cords and electricity, shows off Keys' raw talent. There is nothing to distract the listener from her voice.
Unplugged features many songs from Keys' most recent release, Diary. "You Don't Know My Name" is one stand-out song. The track is cleaned up from its original version, cut to almost half its original length.
"If I Ain't Got You" has far stronger vocals than the original version, with Keys and her backup singers playing off of each other.
"Heartburn" also is performed on Unplugged. It is probably the low point of the album. A song comparing love to a stomach condition is not a good idea to begin with. Keys seems to be moaning throughout the track.
"Streets of New York (City Life)" also stands out on the album. In the middle of the concert, Keys brings out this song, featuring an array of sounds from city streets, complementing Keys's spoken word: "Noise, always noise/ Candles burn, lights are low/ I haven't a place to go/ Life, in its constant state of going nowhere/ Footsteps/ Silence is loud/ Kindness is brave/ Wisdom is long loving is necessary/ I need it/ We need it."
She effortlessly moves from the depressing spoken word that opens the first few minutes of the track.
Keys also provides a rendition of "Every Little Bit Hurts," performed by female greats such as Aretha Franklin and Brenda Holloway. Keys' cover is a success, which makes one wonder, "Why is he so cold to her?"
Two new songs are featured on Unplugged, "Stolen Moments" and "Unbreakable." The latter discusses couples that are inseparable, such as the Jacksons, Ike and Tina Turner, Oprah Winfrey and Steadman Graham and Will Smith and Jada Pinkett Smith. The song is entertaining by making numerous pop culture references. "Stolen Moments," which she co-wrote with Al Green, details a wonderfully romantic relationship that can't exist.
Part of what makes the album and concert memorable is the guest performers. Adam Levine of Maroon 5 joins Keys on a duet, covering the Rolling Stones' "Wild Horses." They are not an obvious choice for a duo, but the performance with piano and sparse percussion is absolutely beautiful and, though "Wild Horses" is more than six minutes long, it never seems drawn out.
"Two of my favorite emcees," says Keys as she introduces Common and Mos Def, who are featured on "Love it or Leave it Alone."
These tracks are combined to close out Unplugged, culminating in an energy that leaves you wanting more.
More Oct. 25, 2005 Arts Stories
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- Alicia Keys: Unplugged and unmatched — Welcome Alicia Keys into your ears for a concert of immense proportions.
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